The service will attempt to capitalise on the telco's AU$450 million network sharing deal with competitor Hutchison, which already has a substantial customer base, and represents the second such service to be launched down under.
One of the service's key selling points will be the availability of richer content over the higher bandwidth it offers.
"These new high speed mobile services ... offer Telstra customers new video features, including video calling, video messagebank and video ring tones," said Telstra marketing executive Mike Robey in a statement.
"The launch of Telstra's new mobile service represents a major shift in the way our customers can communicate and access information on their mobile phone".
While Telstra customers are able to make video calls to Hutchison's '3' branded subscribers, whether the two will interoperate with impending video calling services from Optus and Vodafone is unclear.
Telstra has noted such interoperability will be technically possible when Optus and Vodafone launch their joint network later this year, but network interconnect agreements will be necessary to make it a reality.
Customers will have two options for accessing Telstra's 3G service. Its new 'Active' channel will deliver video content sites, video calling and video messagebank, while customers can also opt for the i-mode channel which has, since last November, provided online access to interactive multimedia applications like the WhereIs mapping service.
Telstra's service will operate between 200kbps and 300 kbps in capital cities (except Darwin and Hobart) in addition to the Gold Coast. 3G services outside these areas will be delivered on the company's existing -- but slower -- GSM network, which does not support video-based services.
Customers will be offered two capped plans (with the purchase of a 3G handset) at AU$49 and AU$79 a month. Telstra says the plans offer up AU$250 and AU$550 worth of standard voice calls, respectively. Both include a two-month free video call bonus.
Telstra 3G phones |
Features |
In a nutshell: Motorola's V975 is the clamshell counterpart to the C975. Available on 3 and Telstra, the V975 has a VGA camera, a bright 65K-colour display, supports MP3 playback and video calls. More info: |
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| In a nutshell: NEC's N600i is a 3G clamshell with a 1.3-megapixel camera that supports a
wireless Internet service called i-mode to access to sites such as eBay, Whereis
and Citibank from your phone.
More info: |
|
In a nutshell: Samsung claims the Z500 is the world's most compact 3G phone. It uses TransFlash media cards and features a dual camera -- one-mexapixel for stills and VGA resolution for video calls. More info: |
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| In a nutshell:
Sony Ericsson's stylish K600i is set to impress 3G users with its sleek build and 1.3-megapixel camera. More info: |
Jeremy Roche from CNET.com.au contributed to this article.
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Sydney2005
06/09/2005 06:56 AM
Find it surprising that at the time the Telstra 3G network went live there was no information on the content of it's new service . The website has information on the actual phones (no prices), but not on content, ie: which news services are available , costs related to that , etc, etc. I walked into a shop with the intention of purchasing a phone / service but the staff had no idea of what was on offer. So I walked out again. I do realise that this was the first day , but do not understand why the information was not available.
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myteddy
25/07/2007 11:40 PM
I am looking into purchasing a new phone i like the nolia 95 but telstra are not doing this phone do you have one simular coming out?
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